Violations in authorities' failure to respond to domestic violence cases; urgent legal changes required – Violation of Art. 3 ECHR and Violation of Art. 14 in conjunction with Article 3 ECHR

EUROPE: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

European Court of Human Rights, judgment, 14 December 2021, Tunikova and Others v. Russia (Application nos. 55974/16, 53118/17, 27484/18 and 28011/19).

«The case concerned acts of domestic violence, including death threats, bodily injuries and one case of severe mutilation, which the applicants sustained at the hands of their former partners or husbands, and the domestic authorities’ alleged failure to establish a legal framework for combating acts of domestic violence and bringing the perpetrators to account. The Court found, in particular, that the Russian authorities had failed to establish a legal framework to combat domestic violence effectively; they had not assessed the risks of recurrent violence; and they had not carried out an effective investigation into the domestic violence the applicants had suffered. It found it established that as regards protection against the risk of domestic violence, women in Russia are in a situation of de facto discrimination. The Court recommended under Article 46 (binding force and execution of judgments) that urgent changes to domestic law and practice to prevent similar violations from occurring be made.»

Direct link to the judgment (hudoc.echr.coe.int)
Accès direct au communiqué de presse (hudoc.echr.coe.int)
Direct link to the press release (hudoc.echr.coe.int)

Gender Law Newsletter FRI 2022#1, 01.03.2022 - Newsletter abonnieren